The present invention relates to a drive assist device that assists a driver who is driving a vehicle by showing, on a display unit, information related to an indication state of a traffic signal.
Recent drive assist devices assist a driver who is driving a vehicle by using traffic information that is obtained through, for example, road-to-vehicle communication or vehicle-to-vehicle communication.
Japanese Patent No. 4968383 discloses one example of such a drive assist device that shows information related to an indication state of a traffic signal located in front of a vehicle in the traveling direction of the vehicle. The drive assist device obtains information related to an indication state of a traffic signal, for example, the remaining time of a red light, through road-to-vehicle communication. Then, the drive assist device outputs, to an output device such as a display, the remaining time until the indication state changes. The drive assist device is configured so as not to indicate the information related to the remaining time when the remaining time before the indication state changes becomes less than or equal to a predetermined value. This deters the driver from suddenly starting or accelerating the vehicle in synchronism with when the indication state changes.
Display units are now provided in a variety of forms. For example, a display unit may be provided as a flat panel display arranged in an instrument panel, a head-up display located in the driver's field of view, and a display for a navigation system. In particular, frequent changes of a representation shown on a display unit located in or near the driver's field of view may cause flickering when the display unit dims. This would be annoying to the driver. It is thus desirable that a drive assist device be capable of showing information on a display unit without annoying the driver regardless of where the display unit is located in the passenger compartment.